Punch, Brother, Punch
by KibaElunal
Summary: Himi Akira uses her duel avatar, Aqua Current in order to protect players of low levels from those who would take advantage of them. Her role as bodyguard is one she takes with pride, though lately her job has become more and more dangerous, despite her cautious nature. With no one else to turn to, she inducts her American classmate and trusted friend, Zack, to become her partner.
1. Chapter 1

Punch, Brother, Punch Ch. 1

AN: Hello everyone! So I know the title is a bit odd, but just for some context: Mark Twain once wrote a story called Punch, Brother, Punch which was about a song that would get stuck in someone's head and couldn't be forgotten until they pushed it on to someone else. Between Aqua Current's memory dump power and Zack's desire to be remembered, I felt it was a fitting title. This is my first Accelworld story, but I had fun writing it. I'll continue when I can. Thank you so much for your support. Don't hesitate to review. -Kiba

"So...what are we doing here again?" I asked, looking down at the small furry otter that sat passively on the bench beside me. Reaching up with one hand, she silently readjusted her glasses before lowering it once more, her nose giving a slight twitch. "Akira?"

"Do not use my name," she stated in her typical monotone fashion. I frowned, but even still I nodded my head to show I understood her request.

"What should I call you then?"

"Whatever you like, just not my name."

"That doesn't help at all," I complained. Running my own 'paw' through my virtual fur, I peered through my avatar's eyes, trying to locate some sort of person who stood out. She'd told me earlier we were waiting for someone here, but I'd be damned if I knew who it was. A sudden thought occurred to me: were we waiting for a secret lover?

My head turned to regard my classmate. The two of us had been close friends for some time. She was, for lack of a better word, convenient. She was quiet, smart, and most importantly, relatively unsocial. "Why are you staring at me like that?" she asked, not even moving her head.

"If I told you, would you care?"

"Probably not," she replied.

"Then not much point in it."

"I suppose not. It was simply for curiosity's sake."

The truth was, since having moved to Japan after my parents had to relocate for business, she was the only one who spoke a decent enough amount of English to hold a conversation with. Or at least, when we had conversation. I was picking it up quickly though. "You know, if you're waiting for a boy, it'd be better to not have me here," I pointed out.

She shifted her glasses once more before shooting me a glare. "This is a business exchange. I brought you along for company. You can leave, if you so choose." I shuddered under her cold gaze.

"Nah. Someone's gotta be here to protect you."

That made her smile. There wasn't many times she showed emotion, but when she did it was always heart-melting. The first time I told her she was much cuter when she smiled, was the last time. She was not a fan of being commented on and she generally tried to keep the subject on someone other than herself. I blamed her shyness.

It was then that this guy showed up. His avatar was a strange one. It was some sort of robot. "Are...are you the one they call Aqua?" He asked me.

Just as I went to speak, Akira cut in. "That would be me," she explained briefly. "Also, it is foolish to use a replica of your duel avatar as your social one."

He began bowing fervently to her. "Please, please, please...I need your help. Two bullies at my school have been targeting me and I'm almost out of points. I heard you were the best bodyguard around. Please, you have to help me."

Bodyguard? I regarded my companion in shock. Was she going to other schools and beating up bullies? Considering her soft frame in the real world, I somehow doubted it. And what was he talking about with points? "What level are you?"

A game? "I'm level 4. Please, you have to help me."

She took a deep breath. "No," she stated.

"You have to!"

"She said, 'no'," I repeated for her, until she shot me another harsh look that shut me up quick. "Sorry," I murmured.

"You were misinformed," she explained to the weird robot man. "I only assist those beneath level 2. You will have to find someone else."

That's when the guy snapped. "Now you listen to me, you bitch! I came all the way to this po' dunk part of town to sit at some stupid cafe because I was told you'd help me get more points! Not to have you turn me away because…"

"Stop talking, Kon Eito." Immediately, the man shut up. Did she know him? He wouldn't be able to see it like I could, but in her eyes there was a confidant smirk. "Or should I say, Chocolate Recluse?"

"How…?"

"You were dumb enough to use your duel avatar. Your full name is also registered to your social account. It wasn't difficult to access both and put the two together. Unless you'd like to have your identity leaked to say...the Red King...you'd better leave."

"You wouldn't…"

"Try me."

The air around us was incredibly tense as the robot guy debated on what to do. Eventually, he nodded his head. "Fine," he growled. "But be warned, if I get out of this, I'm coming for you, Aqua Current." With that, he turned on his heels and stormed off, leaving the two of us alone again.

"Aqua Current?" I asked. "Now I'm the curious one."

"Just a nickname for a game is all."

"Wasn't aware you were much of a gamer."

"Just the one, really," she explained. "Give him a few minutes to leave. I have my webcam synched to watch."

"Wait, that jerk is here? What if he tries to hurt you?"

"It's the price of business, I'm afraid. It is why I choose a public place to meet. Also, why I brought you along." Her paw moved in a blur in front of her face as she began to traverse the menu until at last, her avatar winked out of existence. I followed suit, turning to look around the bustling cafe, only to find that no one around was going too crazy. "He's gone," she stated, reaching down to sip her tea.

"Do you want me to get you a fresh cup? I'm sure they wouldn't mind reheating it for you."

"No, that's quite alright. I rather enjoy lukewarm tea."

Picking up my own iced coffee, I took a sip from it before looking back at her. Just like her social avatar, she wore glasses in real life that she adjusted regularly. Though, to be honest, I think she liked to adjust them, even when she didn't have to. Maybe she thought it made her look dignified.

"Well?"

"Well...what?"

"Are you not going to ask about the game?" I denoted a tone of hope in her voice, but I quickly wrote it off as a trick of the ears. Another benefit of having Akira as a friend was that she wasn't the sort to shove her hobbies in my face. There was no 'Oh! Look at this show!' or 'Read this book!' Rather, she was content with just spending time together, even if it was silent and boring. That's what made her question incredibly odd.

"Something must be really special about it if you're prompting me to ask," I replied.

"Not prompting. Just surprised. I figured that curiosity would have gotten the better of you. Then again, you never were one for the pursuit of knowledge, I suppose."

"That's because I know everything already," I teased, but I could see that she was not amused. In fact, she almost seemed...disappointed. "Fine," I groaned, "I'll bite. What game was this guy talking about? What are points? What's a duel avatar?"

She smiled softly, fishing around inside of her pack beside her to find a link cable. Plugging it into her neuro-linker, she offered me the other end.

"You're...kidding, right?"

"You plug it into the side of your neuro-linker."

"Yeah, I'm aware. I meant, isn't that a little...you know...intimate?"

"Does it matter?" she asked. Her eyes were sparkling beneath her glasses. She was really excited about this prospect. Now she really had piqued my curiosity. Whatever could make her show this much emotion was a big deal.

I took the small block and plugged it into my neuro-linker with a sigh of surrender. "So now what? Do we make out or something?" Her eyes had left mine however, and she was now rapidly pushing buttons in front of her.

"I'll give you a condensed guide. This game is like no game you've ever played before. It's kind of a fighting game, but with a few real world ramifications." Suddenly, a request to share a file appeared on my screen.

"Brain burst?"

"Yes. The game is an enigma. You can only share it with one person. Failure to install is not completely unheard of, so selection of who gets the program is something players must consider seriously. If you click 'No', I don't lose my share, but if you click 'Yes'...well, life isn't going to be the same for you."

Now she was starting to spook me. "So...this is a fighting game only certain people can play. You are giving it to me, because…"

"You are my friend."

My heart pulsed and I almost let out a 'daww'. Akira was not one to often show a sign of affection, and calling me her friend was something that I'd never heard her say before. When she introduced me, which was hardly ever, I was a classmate or an associate. "Well, with a reason like that, how can I refuse?" I asked, reaching out to push 'Yes'. She quickly extended her arm stopping my wrist.

"This isn't something to choose lightly," she whispered ominously. "This isn't a game."

"I thought it was…"

"Well it is and it isn't," she muttered, trying to think of how to explain. As she racked her brain, I smirked, quickly reaching out with my left hand and accepting the invitation, causing her to look up at me in genuine shock. "Hughes-kun!"

"Kun?"

She turned a bright red, realizing her slip up. "Not important. I told you to think about it!"

"I did. If this is something that has you this worked up, it must be important. I guess I'll just have to be careful when we play together." I paused for a moment before adding, "And call me Zack. It's still odd being called by my last name."

As the emotions once more faded from her face, she let out a short sigh. "I suppose I should have anticipated that. Tomorrow is Saturday. We should meet in the morning. Turn off your connection to the world web until then."

"Fine," I surrendered, doing as she instructed. Suddenly a window popped up that crackled with virtual fire. "Welcome to the Accelerated World?" I chuckled. "This is so cheesy."

"You think so now," she replied ominously. Soon the window faded.

"So, what's the big deal about this game, hmm?"

"Say 'Burst Link'."

"Like...out loud?"

"Duh."

"Fine. Burst Link." There was a moment where time stopped, the entire world being washed in blue as my social avatar was evicted out from my table. Standing beside me was Akira's Otter as well. "Whoa," I muttered, looking around.

"Impressive, no?"

Now she was really smiling. I couldn't believe her mouth even could stretch that far across her face. "What is this?" I asked, looking around in awe.

"This," she explained, "is the Accelerated World. Right now, your brain's neurons are firing a thousand times faster than normal. It may seem like time has stopped, but in reality, it is just moving very, very slowly. Specifically, in about sixteen minutes, you'll be removed and only a second will have gone by."

I began looking around myself, curiously examining everyone in the shop. "And no one can see or hear us like this?"

"No."

"Did you seriously just give me a video game that gave me superpowers?" I asked in awe, before realizing something. "Erm...Akira...you may want to look behind you."

She turned around in surprise to see a boy about our age, a bat in his hands, swinging towards the window, right behind where her head was. "Oh my God," she murmured. "I knew this would be bad but..." Her words dropped off as she just stared at him, stunned.

"Umm, yeah. That guy is about to bash your skull in. Good thing we can see it coming. So what now? Do we turn the tables and ninja this guy into oblivion?"

"No," she stated. "We avoid the attack and allow the typical ramifications to occur."

I frowned. "Akira...that's really dangerous. What if you're seriously hurt?"

"Do not worry about me," she replied assuringly. It did little to help my concern. "I can react faster than you think. How else do you think I know when you get to class?"

"You have super powers, and you're using them to mess with me by knowing when to look up just as the door opens?"I shook my head. "Seriously! There's a guy with a bat, and look at you getting me off subject!"

"Well, my plan, unlike yours, will actually work," she scoffed. "Don't forget, he also has Brain Burst. That means he can accelerate, just like you and I can. Now, to exit, focus on leaving the game and say 'Burst Out'. Got it?"

"Yeah...I still don't like this."

"We'll be fine. Burst out." In a blink, she vanished.

I rolled my eyes. I think I preferred it when Akira didn't say much. "Burst out." Color returned to the world as the window behind her shattered, eliciting surprised cries from the other patrons of the cafe. True to her word, she'd managed to dodge it just as the boy dropped his bat and began to run off. "Hey, wait!" I shouted, going to run after him, but Akira snagged me, pulling me back.

"Leave him," she commented. "I've already contacted the police and given them his personal information. Anonymously, of course." She went to sip her tea again, before pausing to fish out a small shard of glass that was in it. I couldn't understand how she could be so calm about all of this. A guy had just tried to kill her. Noting my expression, her pink lips curled slightly once more. "I'll explain everything in the morning. Speaking of which, don't you have a video call to make, soon? It's nearly seven o'clock."

"Shit!" I called out, standing up quickly. Thankfully, my swearing went under the radar in comparison to the broken glass. I quickly dropped five hundred yen on to the table before snatching up my backpack and rushing home.

Akira, however, just waved passively to my leaving, electing to finish her tea as a crowd amassed to investigate the damage.

My friends back in the states had a twelve hour gap between us. Meaning that while it was afternoon here, it was early morning there. Tearing into my room, I quickly dialed into my neuro-linker. Thanks to the harsh school schedule here in comparison to there, I almost never had time to talk to them anymore, but I still managed to find a way to contact them on their birthday.

"Hello?" my friend Jess' voice came through clearly, albeit sleepily. "Who's speaking?"

Did she lose my number? "Jess, it's me, Zack. I just wanted to say happy…"

"Sorry, I don't know anyone by that name. Bye." With a click it ended the call abruptly. I sank into my chair before cursing again. This had become a recent trend over the last year or so. My closest friends were moving farther apart from me, and often I found myself further and further away from them. With a disgusted grunt, I deleted her number from my neuro-linker.

That night, I threw myself into bed, resting my head on my pillow and staring at the small picture I kept on my desk. It was of my old preparatory academy, with me surrounded by my five closest friends. Two of them had been scratched out in a fit of frustration. Now, I was tempted to scratch out a third.

My eyes felt heavy as they closed and it wasn't long before I wished they hadn't. I found myself standing on the commons of my old school. I don't know how, but I knew in my head that I'd moved back from Japan. There were my friends, laughing and joking with one another at the table as I tried to approach.

"Hey everyone, I'm back." I called to them, waving. They all stopped, staring at me in confusion.

"Do we know you?" Kyle asked, causing me to frown. Now he'd forgotten me, too?

"What a weirdo," Jess muttered. "He doesn't have any friends, so he's trying to pretend like he's ours? Talk about social problems."

"But...we are friends," I murmured. "Remember when we snuck into Kyle's Dad's Orchard and replaced all the apple baskets with oranges? He was so pissed off, he made Kyle do schoolwork from home for a week!"

"Great, now he's a stalker too."

"Dude, just leave us alone. Find your own friends."

"Yeah!"

Shouts of agreement trailed away as I tried to explain to them again, but eventually, they began to move away from me, leaving me in an empty void all alone. As I lay in that void, hurt and confused, I could hear voices outside of my prison. "Such a shame about this kid," one muffled man stated, just as a heavy thud came from on top of me.

"Yep. No friends, his dad's too busy to come see his own son's funeral. Now that's the real crime!"

Funeral? I wasn't dead! I began to hammer at the lid as more and more dirt was piled on to me. "Stop!" I cried. "I'm not dead!" But they just kept shoveling anyway.

"Say, what was I supposed to put on this kid's tombstone?"

"I don't know. His pops said to just put 'loving son'. Apparently, even he'd forgotten his name." The two grave diggers laughed together as one last large patch of dirt fell on top of my coffin.

I sat up with a start, cold sweat running down my forehead as I looked around my room. Seeing I was not, in fact, buried alive, I let out a sigh of relief. My heart was racing in my chest. I was trembling, unable to control my worry. With a blip, a message showed up in my inbox from Akira. "Let me in."

Sheesh. Not even a smiley face or anything? "Hold on," I sent back, standing from my bed, walking to my door and pulling back the deadbolt.

Noting my clammy appearance, she smiled softly. "You had the nightmare," she commented, running her hand through her short hair. I looked at her stunned. "That was Brain Burst reading your subconscious. Your duel avatar is shaped by your fears and dreams," she explained. "I won't ask what your nightmare was about. Mostly because it's not typical that people remember it."

"Good morning to you, too," I groaned, walking to my kitchen. "Tea or Coffee?"

"Must I answer?"

"Fair enough," I replied, working to boil the water for her tea. "Hey...why did you want me to turn off the web anyway?"

"Turn it on," she instructed.

"Turn it off, turn it on...make up your mind," I teased, but I did as she asked. As soon as it connected, I saw her lips move before the world began to transform before my eyes. The high rise we were in began to grow darker and darker, causing my chest to heave. Soon, however, light flared from glowing fungus. In big fiery letters, the words 'A Challenger Approaches' burned into existence, causing me to look around me confused. Above me was a standard looking health bar and timer. On one side, a nameplate read Aqua Current. On the other, it read Phosphorous Punch. "What in the hell?" I muttered, just as a tall, lithe figure slowly approached me.

It was definitely feminine, with narrow hips and small breasts. Despite not having a mouth, two long stalks came from either side of her head, giving the appearance of giant pig tails. The most startling thing about it, however, was that it looked to consist entirely of water, ripples of resonance flowing endlessly through her body. Her glowing blue eyes stared at me intently, and it took me a moment to recall that Aqua Current was what the guy had called Akira yesterday.

"Whoa, Akira, is that you? You look…" I was at a loss for words as she simply came closer. Raising her hand, she struck me as hard as she could in the stomach, causing me to double over in pain as a small portion of my health bar disappeared. "Ow, what the hell is your problem?" I coughed.

"You can't let your guard down in this game," she replied. "If you're not careful, you can lose all of your points. When that happens, it will uninstall automatically, taking all memories of the game with it." Her words shook me, and she added as an afterthought, "And thank you for your comment...assuming it was a compliment. Your avatar is not too bad either."

Pressing a few buttons, she materialised an item in her inventory before handing it to me. A mirror? Sure enough, peering into it I found that my face had been replaced with a more robotic one. Mine had intense semi-circle eyes that looked like a pair of dark and angled sunglasses. My head was angled like some kind of animal, though it was hard to recognize it at first. The rest of my body was narrow and moved with little resistance at all. It looked fit, but nothing too excessive.

The entirety of me seemed to be composed of some dark reddish material, almost like a chalky sort of rock. "This is how my fears and anxieties look?" I asked confused. "Wait a moment, are you afraid of water?"

I could sense her frown even without facial features. "It's never something that simple," she explained. "Besides, remember what I told you? Not everyone remembers their nightmare. Most of these fears are the ones we bury so deep that we may not even know what it is that scares us so greatly. Mine is one such fear."

"Sorry." I bowed my head apologetically, only to receive a painful roundhouse that sent me sprawling on to the ground. "God damn it, will you stop hitting me?!" I snapped angrily. "Seriously, that actually hurts!"

"It's only about 50% of the pain you'd feel in real life, thankfully. Don't worry, it'll pass. Now then, would you care for me to explain your avatar?"

"If I say, 'No', are you going to hit me again?"

As she dropped a fierce axe kick on the back of my head, she answered, "Yes."

"Fine," I groaned on the ground. "Tell me."

"Your name is a metal: Phosphorous. This isn't an exceptionally common color to have. Each one represents something in its own way. Blues, like mine, mean overcoming an obstacle through strength. Green means they wish to protect those close to them. And Red wants to reach far away places. Each avatar is completely unique to one another. Finally, there is saturation or purity. The more pure your color, the stronger the traits."

"Pure? How pure is phosphorous?"

"Not very pure at all, I'm afraid. It's one of the more obscure metals."

"Wonderful," I sighed, starting to clamber to my feet. "And the 'Punch'?"

"I imagine it is a reference to the fact that your head looks like that of a kangaroo."

"A kangaroo? Don't those usually kick?" This time, when she went to hit me with a right hook, my arm raised up and deflected it. She swiped at me with a kick, carrying her momentum, but I quickly backed up out of the way.

"Yes, true," she replied, now going into a flurry of attacks that I did my best to avoid. "However, in order to establish dominance, the males often box with punches." Turning her body, she thrust out her leg in a straight kick at my face, but I quickly bent back my head to avoid it. "Which is why they have such flexible necks," she finished, slowly drawing her foot from me. "Now then, what's your special attack?"

"My what?"

"Look at the list."

Opening it up, I saw only one item. "It says, 'Echo'."

"Echo? I wonder what that could mean." Looking up, she saw that my gauge was barely full at all. "Alright, well you'll need to fight me until your gauge is full." She stood proudly, her glowing eyes fiercely meeting mine. "Go ahead."

"Go ahead? You want me to punch you?"

In response, she took another swing at me. I quickly deflected it off my arm again, using the opportunity to jab back. As my fist pressed against her body, it slid inside of her. At first, she gave me a smug look, until a hissing sound filled the air. "What's happening?!" she hissed, quickly detangling from me.

"Are you okay?" I asked, going to check on her, but she held up her hand.

"Don't come closer!" she cried, causing me to pause. Was she afraid of me? "Just...don't hit me again, okay? I wasn't...I wasn't expecting that. Physical attacks don't usually hurt me."

"Doesn't Phosphor turn into acid when it gets wet? Maybe that's why it hurt so much. When you hit me, it doesn't break surface tension, but when I break through you, it turns my fist into acid, which burns like hell." I held up my hand to see it starting to droop a little. It was beginning to solidify slowly, and looking up at my health bar, I saw that it too had gone down. Not as much as hers, did from the attack, but enough to show up. "Great. Punching you hurts me too."

"Well," she sighed, pointing up to the bar beneath my health. "Your special move is charged now. Why don't you try it?"

"But what if it hurts you again?" I asked in concern.

"I'll be fine," she assured me, her voice once more becoming calm and tranquil. "If you beat me, whatever. You could use some extra points anyway."

"Alright then," I replied, holding up my fists. Activating my special ability, I felt a tingling in my body, just as a copy of myself rushed forward, driving its fist into her, the exact same spot I'd struck last time. It then vanished away. Experimentally, I went to my friend, and gently slapped her on the cheek before moving away. Sure enough, a moment later, a version of me materialized and slapped her as well. "It replicates my attacks! That's so cool!"

Just as she stood back up, I decided I'd pay her back for all of the punches and kicks she'd landed on me. I rushed towards her, just as she held up a hand. "No, no! Wait, don't…" I cut her off with a swift kick towards her stomach, leaving a hissing foam behind. Confidant, I'd begun lashing out rapidly, every time she tried to block, the acidic nature of my body would pierce through her, followed by my clone's identical attack.

Just as I went to strike her once more, my fist grazed her cheek before my healthbar depleted completely, causing me to vanish and wake up in my living room. Only a second had gone by as she stood up with a groan. "You jerk!" she snapped! "I tried to tell you not to attack me!"

"What's your problem? What happened to 'If you beat me, whatever'?"

"You didn't beat me moron, you lost," she groaned, resting against the counter. "Your acid hurts you too, remember? Since I had already hurt you pretty bad, you took yourself out. Here." She moved her hand, causing a window to appear, offering a trade. "These are your points back."

"Ten points? What are points for?" I accepted her offer anyway, taking the points I'd just lost.

"Every time you use 'Burst Link' it costs a point. When you fight in a match, you either win or lose ten points. Eventually, you'll get enough to level up, but it costs a thousand points. Be careful with that, or else you'll be put in a bad situation."

"I see," I muttered, reaching for the pot and pouring her the now hot water into a teacup. She went to reach for a box in my cabinet, standing on the tip of her toes, but I easily just grasped the one she wanted before handing it to her. "So, let's see if I got this. I fight people to get points that I use for super powers. If I lose all my points, I lose all of my powers and don't remember ever having them in the first place. If I walk outside on the network, people can pull me into a fight. That about cover it?"

She dipped the bag into the water to steep. "That just about covers it. There is one last thing," as she spoke, she suddenly appeared very meek and soft-spoken. "Something regarding me."

"Akira?"

She looked up to me, her normally stoic eyes unsure of how to express her emotions. Silently, she wrapped her arms around me in a hug. I couldn't believe she was even making physical contact with me. In the past twenty four hours, I'd seen more of her feelings than I'd ever seen. "My job is one of a body guard," she explained. "I help low level players who don't have many points stay afloat. That guy yesterday was too high level to help. That's why he became angry. Lately...lately, business has become much more dangerous. I'm only level one, so...the reason I invited you to Brain Burst, the real reason...I need a partner I can trust. Please, do not tell me I misplaced it in you." Clearing her throat, she bashfully pulled her arms away from me. "Sorry. You can do whatever you want. I didn't mean to force you into this."

"I'll help you," I stated. She looked up at me with those big eyes of hers. "I promise, I'll help you. This game looks like it'd be fun, but if this is something that's scaring you...I can't, as your friend, just stand by. Tell me what to do, and I swear," I crossed my heart with my fingers, "I will do everything in my power to help you. Understand?"

She nodded, averting her gaze from me to her teacup. "Okay. Our first mission is a simple one," she replied. Turning back, her eyes gleamed fiercely. "We're going to drain away all of Chocolate Recluse's points."

To be continued...


	2. Chapter 2

Punch, Brother, Punch Ch .2

 **AN: Whoo! Chapter Two! So, I hope you guys really enjoy this story. I'm going to be working on it every now and then. Sorry for the huge info/lore dump, but I imagine this is a process every OC has to go through when first picking up the game. That being said, I'm super excited to see what you guys think of the chapter. Be sure to review! -Kiba**

"Chocolate Recluse? Isn't that the guy who attacked you yesterday?"

She nodded her head. "Yes, I'm afraid it is. Something about his story sounded suspicious, so I checked up on it. It seems that he is the real bully."

"Figures."

"The boys he was referring to are both level two. They've been teaming up on him to keep him from stealing their points, but they haven't gone on the offensive." Her eyes gleamed as she once more shifted her glasses. "I wish to help them, but I fear that Chocolate Recluse is something of a counter to my body. His venom disrupts the membrane that protects my body."

"But since I'm metal…"

"Venom would not affect you. That is correct."

"So how do we find him?" She bit her lip, taking the opportunity to drink some tea. "You don't know where he is," I realized. "Well...don't you have someone who tracks people or something? I mean...you threatened him yesterday with the Red King or whatever. What if we talked to him?"

"No!" she abruptly shouted before catching herself. "No, that's a bad idea. It is best that we do not get involved with the Kingdoms. I'm afraid we'll have to resort to something that is a little less than ethical."

"Such as?" I asked suspiciously.

"Hacking into his social account and cross referencing his hotspots to triangulate his area."

"Are you insane?! Akira, this is just a game! I'm pretty sure that's a crime!" I ran my hand through my hair in panic. "I mean, how would you even…"

"Done," she commented, her fingers flying over the screens on her neuro linker. "As I suspected, he's in the Red Kingdom's territory." She pulled up a map, displaying it to me as she highlighted the area she'd managed to find him in. "It looks as if he's going to ask the Red King herself for help."

"I'm sorry. _Her_ self? I thought it was a King."

"Simply a title. Three of the kings are female: red, purple, and black."

"Which Kingdom do we belong to?"

She stopped, taking a deep breath as she closed her eyes. Did I say something wrong? "At one point, we were allied with the Black King, but I fear something happened that sent me all the way down to level one. This is why I am now unaffiliated with any Kingdom."

"So she just ditched you because you were level one! That's utter bullcrap!" I clenched my fist, going for the door. "Maybe I'll talk to this Black King and get her to take you back. She can't just abandon her…"

" _I_ left," she interrupted moving between me and the exit. "I'm the one who chose to leave the Nega Nebulous. Not her. But this isn't important right now. I need you to focus on this mission. Now, we're going to most likely run into some trouble with the Red King if we're not careful. Luckily, I have a connection on the inside."

"Really? Then what's the problem."

She huffed. "I sent her a message last night. She wishes to test you herself, though I told her I'd be more than willing to do it. Alas, if we want her help, I am only allowed to spectate."

"Ha! Well I promise I'll put up a fight. I won't let her get the best of me. I'll give her the old one-two punch." I thrust my fist outward in a jab to indicate my point. A slight snicker came from Akira that had me conflicted. On one hand, I couldn't believe she was laughing at me. On the other, I'm glad that she was laughing. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing," she lied. "We should meet her now. We'll head to the Strawberry Palace."

"Lead the way, I guess."

"There are a few more rules you need to know when it comes to Brain Burst," she explained as we sat on the bus. "Firstly, never allow someone else to find your true identity. The importance of us locating and defeating Chocolate Recluse isn't that he's dangerous or a bully, but that he now knows my identity. Amongst friends, it's okay to trust them with your name, like you and I, but with others, you should keep that information as limited as possible. You said earlier 'this is just a game', but that's incorrect. In the accelerated world, people of all walks of life are given power. That means there are people who use it for good and who use it for evil."

"I see. So telling people my name could lead to an incident like what happened yesterday at the cafe. Right?"

"Precisely. It is why I instructed you not to use my real name yesterday. I've already introduced you to my friend, so don't worry so much about keeping that secret, but know that she is much more reserved. Do not expect her to repay the favor."

"Isn't that dangerous?"

Taking a deep breath, she sighed. "I'm not trying to scare you Hughes...I mean Zack. I'm just telling you to stay alert. I need you to help me, not to become another client, understand?" My heart sank. So she didn't think I would be capable enough to help her? "Don't be sour. I chose you for a reason, after all. If I didn't think you could handle it, I wouldn't have given you the file."

"So keep my identity close to my chest. Got it. What else?"

She seemed a little nervous to tell me the next bit. Shyly, she removed her glasses, wiping them with a cloth, and replacing them on her face before speaking again. "May I speak frankly?" she asked. Once I nodded, she let out a soft sigh before continuing. "You must value your friends and keep them close. In the accelerated world that we live in, it's important to not let things tear you apart. If you do, it could very well spell out your end."

"How can you say that to me?" I snapped. "Of course I value my friends! Do you honestly think that I don't know how important they are? They're everything I have!"

"Calm down…"

"Don't tell me to be calm! You said yourself that we were friends! Do you really think I don't value you?!"

Her head turned towards me, her eyes focusing intently on to mine. Hers were a beautiful gold unlike any I'd ever seen. She rested her hands on mine. "Understand, please. I am not questioning you as a friend."

"You could have fooled me, because it seems like that's exactly what you were doing."

She remained quiet, slipping her hands from mine again. "Zack...how long have you lived in Japan now?"

"A few years now, you know that. We went to Junior High together."

"And after these last three years, how many people would you count amongst your close friends?" My fist clenched tightly. Able to see my anger, she continued calmly. "Zack. I am not saying anything about you. But I've found that it's quite obvious that you keep me around less as a friend and more as a social comfort. To you, I am a safety net. To me, however, you are someone I can rely on to not only be there when I need it, but you can also be someone who may come to me with a problem."

"That's...not true…" I tried, slowly relaxing my hand. "I don't want you to think I see you as just someone I can use if I need help. I wouldn't be helping you now if that was all I saw you as."

"You would," she insisted. Her words hurt me. Was that really what she thought of me? "You are afraid I would leave you. So you put on a facade of friendship because of that fear. In truth, I'm not able to gauge how much you truly care at all."

"What do you mean?"

She said nothing at first. "We will discuss it later," she finally replied after a long pause. "Right now, we must keep catching you up on rules. Rule number 3: If you fight an opponent or opponents whose combined sum is at least three levels higher than you or your teams combined sum, even if you lose it will not drain you of all of your points."

"That's handy. Then shouldn't I solely fight those people?"

"Just like any other game, levels indicate power. The higher level you are the more special abilities you unlike. For you and I, being level 1, we only start with the first ability we are given. For you, that is Echo. For me, that is Memory Leak."

"Memory...leak?"

"I can wipe away the memories of those I fight or encounter, but to do so I must be in a match with them and I must face them head on. It is not an easy ability to use. That is another reason I am bringing you along. I may need you to restrain someone so that I may erase my identity from them."

My heart began to pound fiercely in my chest. It was as if I were at the top of a hill on a rollercoaster just before it plummeted downward. Why did her power terrify me so much? If she noticed, she didn't bring light to it.

"There is one more rule that is very important for you to remember. Possibly even the most important."

"All right. I'm ready."

"Have fun."

I blanked for a moment. For a moment a small grin came across my face and I began to chuckle, until I realized she was not laughing. "You're serious? That's the super important rule? You sound like a children's baseball coach."

"I have seen many people fall to the darker side of Brain Burst. But in the end, this is 'just a game'...in a sense. Hold on to that and don't ever let it go. The moment you cease to see Brain Burst for what it is," she shot me a look that chilled me to the core. "I'll drain your points myself."

"Holy crap, Akira. Lighten up. I get it okay? I'll have fun."

"This is also a safety thing, Zack. There are people who have _died_ over this game, understand? You saw it yesterday in that boy's eyes. That's why we are going to drain him of points. He's become far too dangerous. We can't allow him to continue being a Burst Linker."

"So...what? We're like the Accelerated World Police now?"

Since the start of our conversation, she smiled for the first time. "Yes. I think I rather like the sound of that. Accelerated World Police. Well Officer Punch, do you have any questions for your Guardian?"

"Guardian?" I snickered.

"That is what we call the person who first gave us the game. It is your responsibility, should you share it, to teach them the ways of the Accelerated World and ensure that they are safe and protected. Just as I am doing with you, now."

"Fine, but I'm not calling you Mistress. So just throw that thought out the window."

She giggled softly. "That's okay. I completely understand. Oh, one more thing! You've played Pokemon, yes?"

"Umm, yeah? Why?"

"When you are challenged by a Burst Linker, you should give it your all. Don't hold back. To do so would be considered rude. You and I will share many battles...hopefully. I need you to never hesitate or hold back when we fight."

"Except against you...right?"

She didn't say anything, simply looking down at her feet. "No. Not even against me."

As the bus came to a halt, we disembarked in front of the large cafe. Descending the steps into the small and cozy room, I immediately felt the eyes of a few others on us. She wasn't kidding about the territories. It felt like a gang would jump us at any given second. "Good afternoon. Please, have a seat. Can I get you anything?" The waitress asked us.

"Yes. I'll have tea, and you will have iced coffee. Is that not correct?"

"Erm...yes. Thank you." It was odd that Akira ordered for me. Was there something important about this? Despite her calm response, she seemed really nervous. The feeling quickly spread to myself.

Just as the waitress set our order down, her lips moved. "Burst link." I barely had time to fathom what she'd said before being hurled into the Accelerated World at blinding speeds.

"A New Challenger Appears" burned into existence as our life bar and special gauge formed above us. "FIGHT!" The compass appeared before me, blinking urgently that someone was behind me. I quickly dodged aside just as a woman performed a fierce kick towards me.

"Phosphorus Punch…" she purred, examining my name. "Interesting."

Following her gaze, I read her tag before looking back towards her. "Blood Leopard? That's not intimidating. Why couldn't I have gotten a name that was more bad-ass?" She chuckled slightly. "What's so funny?"

"You remind me of someone, is all. If you won't come to me, however, I'll come to you." All around us I could hear laughs and jeers as she raced towards me. Sliding a foot back, I put up my fists. "If you just stand there, you'll make a much easier target!"

Performing another flying kick, my head retracted backwards before I drove my fist up hard into her back. Knocking her out of co-ordination, she rolled mid air and managed to land on her feet. "Maybe I'm just gauging how good you are," I retorted. "I'd hate to be a disappointment."

"Didn't your Guardian tell you? You're supposed to give it your all!" Just as she finished speaking, I rushed her, drawing back my fist and leaping high into the air to slam it back down. My special gauge wasn't nearly full enough to use Echo yet. Just a little more.

Before I made contact, she vanished, reappearing behind me as I smashed down to the ground. Where was Akira? Did she not come in with me? She managed to grab me around the back as I spun, trying to strike her with my elbow, but instead, she sank her teeth into my neck. I could feel her draining me of...something. As my health lowered, my special gauge seemed to flow into her. "You'd better not leave a hickey," I grunted before grasping her neck. With a quick movement, I flipped her over my shoulder to land on the ground a few meters away.

"You have jokes, I see. Don't you ever take anything seriously? Or do you just intend to continue being an embarrassment to your Guardian?"

I inhaled a sharp breath. I couldn't let her get into my head. "I only take serious things seriously. Come on. A love bite? I know you can do better than that."

"It's a shame the same could not be said of you," she countered, her body twisting and contorting. Her shape began to change until at last, she looked like a full grown metallic leopard. Hunched low to the ground, I could tell she was preparing to charge.

With a roar, she lunged straight towards me, fangs bared. I didn't have hardly any special in my gauge left. She expected me to be taken off guard, so I stood my ground and just as she was within reach, I slammed my fist into arc on her back in the exact same spot as last time. "I'm not letting you get to my neck again!"

"I don't need to." She snagged my upper leg, taking me down to my back as she sank her teeth even deeper than last time, drawing out a loud cry of pain from me. "Did you know that the biggest artery in your body is in your thigh?" Her voice was a playful purr as with great force, she ripped my limb clear off before tossing it aside.

My health bar was barely a sliver of blue now, but hers was at least at three-quarters full. Shit. I'd failed Akira. "You can do it, Punch!" I heard her cry from above me. Looking up to the roof, I could see her standing amidst multitudes of other onlookers, particularly ones that were the color red. "Prove that I didn't make a mistake in picking you!"

Blood Leopard watched amused as I rolled over, pushing myself to my knee and my stump. I wouldn't be able to move anymore. Not that I moved much to begin with. "She's right, you know?" I sighed. "Aqua Current is pretty smart. I'm practically useless. But, if she thinks that I can do it, well...I'd hate to see her be wrong for the first time."

"Still making jokes?" she snarled, coiling her muscles like a spring before pouncing at me. Just as I went to swing, however, she suddenly veered off course, causing my fist to drag along her underbelly. "Ugh...my stomach hurts...what did you do to me?"

"Seriously? Am I the only one who pays attention to chemistry? Phosphorous is highly poisonous. I wondered why you kept biting off pieces of me." Sure enough, her health bar was deteriorating rapidly. "Props to this game though. They really thought of everything. But this is the end now." Just as I reared back my fist to punch her, I realized that it was now covered in flames. "What the Hell?"

With a whoosh, the flames engulfed me causing me to scream in agony before my health bar emptied completely, causing me to shatter. When I came back with a start, I quickly began patting myself, only to find that I was, in fact, not on fire. "What was that about paying attention in chemistry?" Our waitress teased. "Phosphorous also is what is used to make matches. Current, you have permission to hunt your quarry in our territory. Punch...thanks for the match."

"Thank you," I replied as well, bowing my head.

Akira smiled at me over her teacup as she sipped from it. Our waitress returned to the counter as I drank my own iced coffee. "So?" I asked her, curious as to her opinion on my match.

"You're far too stationary," she immediately replied. "You're not a defensive type, so standing and waiting for them to come to you is a bad idea. You'll get beat every time."

"But...But...I almost beat her," I protested.

"She was holding back," she stated matter-of-factly. "In a real fight, she would have had you in the first strike. She is of course, unlike any other opponents we'll be fighting, but it doesn't change the fact that you need to improve yourself."

Just as I was about to argue, the door opened and the tinkling of a bell could be heard as a young girl came in, a big smile on her face.

"Uh oh," Akira whispered. "Trouble."

I looked over my shoulder at her then back to Akira skeptically. "The little girl?"

"Keep your head down and don't say anything," she urged me, her eyes focused intently on the child. What was she so worked up about? The girl seemed rather cute actually. I doubted she'd be capable of being dangerous to anybody.

"One slice of Strawberry Labyrinth please," she cheerfully requested. Blood Leopard smiled, fetching her the piece of cake she requested.

"That'll be 600 yen."

Taking out her coin purse, she opened it before her face visibly sank. "Oh...I don't have enough," she murmured. Just as Blood Leopard was going to put the cake away, I stood up.

"Here, let me cover that for you," I offered, giving her the money.

"Gee, thank you 'big brother'. I really appreciate it!"

I simply shrugged. "Don't mention it. We were all little kids once."

Akira was instantly up and pulling me back towards the table. "Just put a tip on the table, we're leaving," she commented.

"What? What's wrong?"

"THE FUCK DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!" the little girl boomed. Immediately, many of the occupants of the cafe blocked our way. "You insolent little shit. You think you can just fucking mouth off to me like that because I'm smaller than you?"

Akira quickly moved in front of me. "Yuki," she calmly stated, "it was an accident. He didn't know."

"Current. It's been a while. Back to visit your Mom, huh?"

Mom? My eyes looked from Akira to Blood Leopard. The two didn't look anything alike. Before she could speak, the waitress cleared her throat. "Actually Master, I requested they both come here. I wished to test her Son before the two set out on a mission together. But it is opportune you are here. They wanted to make a request of you, isn't that right, Current?"

Son? Master? Then...did that mean…? Oh shit. "I'm really, really sorry," I tried, "I meant no disrespect."

"Shut you fucking pie hole until I'm ready to talk to you, maggot!" she growled before looking back to my Guardian. "Geez, how long have you been training this dumbass anyway? I give him a week before he's out of points."

Akira sighed. "Today is his first day. I have confidence in him though."

"Are you going to make him stay level 1 like you?"

She didn't respond. It never occurred to me that she could choose to stay her level. "That will be up to him," she finally replied. "I made that choice on my own. I want him to do the same."

"Pssh, you're such a liar," Yuki argued. "You didn't choose to be level 1, some monster drained all your levels. That's really why you quit the Nega Nebulous. I told you, should have joined the Red Legion, you'd have been a lot happier right now."

"At any rate," Akira murmured, adjusting her glasses, "Punch and I have a mission to attend to."

"Oh, pray tell?" She asked, coming closer to look up at the two of us. "What sort of mission is it that brings you here to our Kingdom, hmm?" Her crimson eyes burned holes in mine and I realized she was asking me to answer.

"Oh...we're...hunting someone."

"Who?"

I looked to Akira, and she simply nodded. "His name is Chocolate Recluse. He attacked my Guardian in real life yesterday. We intend to shut him down before he has the chance to hurt anyone else."

"Ah, it's that jerkwad. Well I tell you what. When you see him, tell him that the Red King is also on his ass so he better watch his fucking back!"

"So...we're good then?" I asked cautiously. "No hard feelings?"

"Nope. Burst Link!"

Oh shit. Appearing into the fields, I looked down to see that her duel avatar was only about half my size with a small pistol on her hip. "Scarlet Rain," I noted to myself. "Interesting name."

"Shut up asshole! It beats Phosphorous Punch!"

"Fair enough. You have me there." I prepared myself. She was a King, so what did that tiny pistol of hers do that was so damned powerful? I'd be really pissed if this game just made guns over powered for 'realism' or something stupid. The earth below me began to rumble as volcanic flows began to course around us, leaving large platforms of stone.

"Ah, a volcanic area. This should be interesting," she grinned. I could already feel my body starting to heat up as I looked her square in the eyes.

"So if you kill me this once, will you let us go?"

"I don't know, that depends on how bored I am!"

 _All right, think Zack, think! The timer's counting down to start and we saw that even friction lights this body up like a torch. Advantages: She's tiny. I can over power her with physical strength...Oh shit, I don't have any more advantages._

"Quit undressing me with your eyes, pervert!"

"Oh my God, really?! You're like...7 years old! I'm over twice your age!"

"That just makes it even more disgusting!"

That was when an idea popped into my head. I knew what to do. It may not let me live, but it'd be sure to damage her enough to make her less interested in fighting me for round two.

Three…

Two…

One…

Fight!

As soon as the letters faded, a large light appeared behind her. Sure enough the heat alone was enough to make my body combust. Her eyes went wide in surprise as I put my plan into motion. I'd only have one shot at this.

I ran as fast as I could towards her. Raising her pistol, she fired, catching me in the arm and dealing a small amount of damage. But by then, I was upon her. I wrapped my arms tightly around her in a bear hug, using my size to keep her hoisted off the ground where she had no traction.

"Hey! Who said you could touch me, pervert?!" I grit my teeth as the flames engulfed us both. Our health bars were going down rapidly. Sure enough, her tank swallowed the both of us, leaving me behind her while her arms were restrained in its controls. "Let go of me!"

"No!" I hissed. "You wanted proof I'm worthy, Current?! Then here...it...comes! ECHO!"

"Echo?!"

Duplicates of myself and the flames burst into life, causing our health bars to begin dwindling even faster. She jerked and squirmed in my grasp, trying to strike at me with her feet her elbow, anything she could use to try to escape. That's when I saw a series of missiles launch free, before turning back towards the cockpit. "Oh shit…" I muttered as the words reverberated through the copies.

"SAY GOODNIGHT SUCKER!" she cackled, as they swarmed inside of the cockpit. No! Her Health bar was almost empty! I was about to beat her! But as the explosions echoed around me, all of the damage quickly shattered my health meter, causing us both to awaken in the real world. "You asshole!" She growled, coming up to me and punching me as hard as she could in the chest, over and over again.

It stung of course, but due to her size, I wasn't too badly injured. I let her hammer on me for a bit longer before I finally caught her wrist to stop her, causing her to wrench away from me. "Look, I'm sorry," I repeated. "I didn't mean to insult you, I'm not a pervert, and I was just trying to do something nice by paying for you to have a slice of cake. Thank you for giving us permission to hunt down Chocolate Recluse, but please, don't hold it against me for not knowing better." Getting down on my knees, I bowed down to her. "I am begging your forgiveness."

She put her foot on the back on my head, pressing my face into the linoleum. "You almost took me down to 0 you son of a bitch! I am not going to let my reputation be sullied because some Level 1 asshole pervert fucker decided he didn't get enough hugs as a child and figured he'd get them from me."

"Perhaps," Akira replied, stopping her from stomping my head in, "you simply underestimated him. He has a natural talent, and I imagine that a King such as yourself doesn't often need to sully yourself with fighting level 1 players. With your full power, we all know, I believe, that he'd be no match." I kept my head low in disappointment. Was this always going to be Akira's reaction to my fights? I came close, but only because they were going easy on me?

"You know what? Yeah! That must be it! I was going easy on you. You better be freaking grateful, Rookie! I decided I'd make you look pretty good in front of your Guardian, so you owe me now, got it? Just for that, I'll make you buy me another slice of cake."

"Fine...whatever you want," I murmured as she took my foot off of me. Tossing the money on to the counter, Akira took my hand and pulled me after her. Just as we reached the door, Scarlet Rain called after me.

"Hey, Rookie!" I turned back to regard her. "Cheer up. You didn't do too bad...for a newbie. If you find yourself looking for a Legion, I may even consider letting you be my lap dog! Think on that, k?"

I nodded before opening the door for Akira and following her out. As the door closed behind us, the two of us began our long walk to the bus stop. "That's quite the honor," Akira stated, causing me to look at her.

"Oh yes. I'm sure being a lap dog to an Elementary School student is a huge honor. It's pretty much a universal title with all the prestige that entails."

Akira frowned. "I'm not joking. The Red King does not often give out praise. Despite how she may seem, she's actually very kind hearted, but she would never give a compliment out of said kindness."

"Forgive me if I'm doubtful," I sighed. "Akira, why did you say all that stuff about me?"

"What stuff?"

"That stuff about how everyone could beat me if they weren't going easy on me. I just...I hope you're not regretting this decision already. I'm trying my best. I had no idea she was the Red King, I was just trying to be nice...you know?"

She paused, giving me a soft smile. "Of course I know that. No I don't regret my decision, not by a long shot. I said those things because you hurt the Red King's pride. She's called the Immobile Fortress, because she's so heavily armored and has so much fire power that people can't get within arm's reach of her. I'm pretty sure you're the first person in a long time to actually manage to touch her, and that's why she was so upset. That being said, she was, in a sense, going easy on you. There are rules for the accelerated world that even the Kings must follow, but those are not yet for you to know. Someday, you may learn them, but that day isn't today. Now come on, we have a bus to catch. We can discuss your 'strategy' on the way there."

I tried to return her smile, but in truth, I was very overwhelmed by it all. This game was insane, in multiple ways. We have elementary students ruling virtual gangs. On top of that, Akira seemed to imply that I'd still only scratched the surface after fighting one of the most powerful players in the game. Which begged the question, how did Akira know so much about her and why did the King call Blood Leopard her 'Mom'? All of those questions could be summed up into one: just what is Akira hiding from me?

To be continued...


	3. Chapter 3

Punch, Brother, Punch Ch. 3

As the bus rumbled onward, I watched the scenery pass by. When I felt something warm against my shoulder, I turned to see that Akira's eyes were closed and she was snoozing peacefully.

My cheeks turned bright red. The fact she'd fallen asleep on me was sweet, and again, I began to wonder just what sort of person she really was. Brain Burst truly had unlocked an entire new world for me. My role in it, however, had yet to be determined.

Realizing that everyone's eyes were on the two of us, I readjusted to shake her gently. "Akira, wake up," I whispered to her. Blinking her eyes, she stared up at me through her glasses before pulling back in shock.

"Ah! My apologies, Hughes. I didn't realize I fell asleep on you."

"I don't mind. I just thought you'd be embarrassed is all. If you don't care though, my shoulder is always available to you."

Now it was her turn to be flustered. Considering it for a moment, she looked around cautiously to see if any one she recognized was on the bus with us. Then, she again rested her head against my shoulder and closed her eyes, a soft smile spreading across her lips.

For a moment, I didn't move a muscle. My feelings for Akira didn't extend very far past friendship, and I'd always assumed she felt the same. Perhaps I was a closer friend to her than I realized.

Soon after, she was asleep again. As time seemed to tick by, I suddenly felt a chill down my spine. Something was coming, I could feel it in my gut. "Burst link," I murmured. As before, my body was avatar was ejected from me. Opening up the opponent select screen, my heart nearly stopped.

Chocolate Recluse was here. Picturing him standing behind Akira with that bat made my blood boil. Without a thought, I selected his name and suddenly my duel avatar materialized into a desolate wasteland.

"What the…?" The guy cried, looking around. "Someone found me?"

"You should have kept your network off," I lectured, causing him to wheel about to look at me. His duel avatar was an ugly thing. A segmented mechanical creature with four long leg-like spines jutting out of his back. On his face were sharp mandibles as well as a weird spray nozzle, his poison.

"Who the fuck are you?"

"I'm a friend of Aqua Current. I don't take kindly to those who attack my friends."

"Wait...your accent. You're that _gaijin_ that was with her the other day, aren't you! You bastard, I've been having to hide from the cops thanks to that stupid bitch and her meddling."

"Firstly, you were the one who approached her. I know all about you and your tricks, Recluse. Secondly, you're going to pay for calling her a bitch. I intend to drain you of every last one of your points. You don't deserve this game. As far as I'm concerned, you barely deserve to live."

"Heh...You're level 1! You can't take me on. I'm a level 4! Then again, you're a _gaijin_ , so you're probably shit at math anyway."

3...2...1...0! The moment the fight started, I rushed him, slamming my fist straight into his face and sending him hurtling backwards. As he crashed into the ground, his body bounced like a pebble across a pond. Still, his health bar barely depleted. Damn it, I was in trouble.

"Grr, you son of a bitch, that hurt! Well fine then. Take this!" With an intake of air, he hocked what looked like an ethereal green loogie at me. Raising my arm, the poison coated it, but just as Akira predicted it didn't affect me in the slightest.

"What else have you got?" I asked, shaking it off of me.

"Come get me and find out!" With that, he turned and ran off into the wastes.

"Get back here!"

There was no time to lose. I continued to run after him, but he was quick. Worse, the rusted metal around us gave him plenty of places to hide. I paused, having lost his trail, scanning around me for any sign of him.

There! Some movement! I turned, running after the figure, only for something to suddenly latch onto my arm. "What the hell?!" I tried to pull away, and after some hard tugging, I came free from my invisible bonds, only to roll and find myself completely wrapped up in more of the invisible sticky goop.

Webs! Damn it, I'd fallen right into his trap!

I struggled to break free, but they were too strong. I was glad Akira wasn't here to see this. It was absolutely humiliating. Suddenly, the sand beneath me began to shift, until I was pulled under by a pair of hands, all the way up to my neck.

Now I was really in trouble. Sure enough, a small distance away, the bastard leapt up from the sand, having burrowed into it while I was trying to track him. "Look at the little fly, caught in my web. Well, little fly, if my poison won't do the trick, I guess I'll have to do it myself!" He raised his foot stomping hard on my head.

My health bar went down just a little, but my head was throbbing. Reeling his leg back, he kicked my hard in the chin, dealing another sliver of damage. _Come on, come on!_ He struck me again and again. My head's carapace was cracked, and even at half the pain, I felt the same way I had when I'd gotten into a car accident. The doctors called it whiplash, and it was excruciating. I had to wear a brace for a week.

Still, my health bar was nearly 3/4 full. This guy may as well have been torturing me. He seemed to have the same thought. One of his spindly legs probed my head, testing it for weak spots as a disgusting hose emerged from his back.

"Well, it's no poison, but this should work nicely," he smirked. Stabbing the needle-like tip of the hose into my head, I felt something flowing into me. It was a thick goop, but surprisingly, I didn't feel any pain. When he withdrew the hose, he still had that damn grin on his face.

"Is that the best you can do?" I scoffed, despite I had no reason for my bravado. "I've taken worse hits in a pillow fight."

He didn't reply, instead, he crouched down and pat my head condescendingly, before saying in broken English, " _Farewerr_ , _Gaijin_. Thanks for guiding me to Aqua Current. I've been tracking your IP since we started. See you on the bus."

 _No!_ Akira was still asleep! If he found us, he could follow her home and...I refused to let my thoughts take me any further. I tried as hard as I could to break free from the sand, but to little avail. It was then that the burning started.

I gave a synthetic cough, and a small black figure darted from my mouth and into the sand. What the hell? Recluse picked up the small thing, giving it a gentle stroke. "Look at that. The eggs have already hatched. It won't be long now."

Agonizing pain filled my head as the swarms of baby spiders began to eat me from the inside out. My health bar was dwindling rapidly as the pain reached unbearable levels. The moment it hit 0 and I shattered, I awoke in my body, grasping my head in unbelievable pain.

Hearing my distress, Akira woke up quickly. "What? What is it?" she asked in concern. "Do you have a headache?"

I waved her off, shaking my head. "I found Chocolate Recluse. He was in hiding, and I tried to fight him, but he beat me. Now he's tracked me down. We have to get off."

As I went to reach for the string to stop the bus, she pounced on me, grabbing my hand and pulling it back down. "No, don't. Let him come," she instructed.

"Are you out of your mind? He tried to bash your head in last time. I don't want this guy getting anywhere near you!"

Keeping her hand on mine, she used her free one to adjust her glasses. "This isn't something for you to be concerned about. In fact, this is precisely what my plan was."

"What?! You wanted him to come after you?"

"Yes. I suspected he would be seeking signs of my activity. While I appreciate your concern, we are the bait and he is walking right into my trap."

The bus slowed to a halt. As the doors opened, I turned to see Chocolate Recluse climbing aboard. The moment our eyes met, I saw him reach for something in his waistband. Instinctively, Akira and I both shouted "Burst Link!"

As we popped out of our bodies, we immediately opened Brain Burst and issued a challenge to Chocolate Recluse. This time, instead of a desolate area, we were in a thriving jungle.

"You know this won't end well for either of you," Chocolate Recluse growled. "I'm going to destroy you both, then the moment we get out of this game, I'm going to shoot you dead."

"We'll give you one last chance Chocolate Recluse. Surrender peacefully and...unngh!"

Before Akira could finish speaking, he spit a jet of poison into her face, causing her to cry out in pain. As she tried to get rid of the burning venom, I rushed this guy in rage. He barely managed to block my attack before I continued to follow it up with a flurry of punches and kicks.

Knocking him away, he turned and scurried up one of the trees before vanishing in the canopy. Unable to find him, I quickly went back to Aqua Current. "Current, are you okay?" I asked, remembering the rules about keeping our names secret.

"I...I can't see…" she whimpered. "It burns. I can't see!"

"How can I help?"

"You'll have to suck out the venom."

I looked at her in confusion. "What?"

"It's the only way to get it out of my membrane. You can get through it too, remember."

"But...won't that mean I have to…"

"Now's not the time, he'll be back any moment!"

I nodded. Gently taking her cheek in my hand, her surface began to sizzle lightly as she winced. I placed my lips against where her face would be, and began to suck. I could feel my mouth flooding with water as well as something else.

Something that burned my tongue, assuming I had one. Turning away, I spit the venom on the ground, causing it to hiss and sizzle with the acid that had formed. "Better?"

"Y-yeah," she replied hazily. Suddenly, her focus sharpened. "Punch, look out!"

Following her finger, I turned just in time to punch him straight in his chest. Still, his long spindly legs pierced straight through me and into her. "Hehehehe. You never learn! You and your bitch together still aren't enough to take me on! I can't wait to steal your points!"

"I'll get you for that you son of a bitch," I growled, wrapping my arms around his body. He began to squirm and struggle, but my grip only tightened more. Beneath my strength, his body was beginning to crack.

"No, no, no! Let me go!" he demanded. Planting his actual foot into my chest, he kicked off of me, turning and running away as he had in the wastelands. Turning around, I found that Akira too, had vanished.

"Current?" I called in confusion.

"Don't worry about me. After him!" a voice echoed in my head.

I nodded, turning to chase him down. This time, however, I was more cautious. I wouldn't let him get the drop on me like he did last time. The moment I felt him sling a web around my arm, I snapped my fingers, igniting my hand in flames and burning them away. "Not this time," I growled, before placing my hand against one of the jungle trees.

The fire caught quickly, rushing upward to start an inferno in the canopy above us. Shaking my hand to extinguish it, I watched as he fell to the ground some thirty feet away in a smoldering heap. He was still alive, but only at a quarter of his health.

My shadow loomed over him ominously. I was eager to pay him back for every slight he'd committed. His egg-hose dashed forward, but I was faster than him. I grabbed the thing, clamping down on it and causing only a small amount of fluid to dribble out.

I planted my foot on him and with a vicious pull, ripped it free from his back, much to his agony. I hoped it hurt. I hoped it felt like I'd just ripped off his dick. Tossing it away, I raised my foot to stomp on him, just like he'd done to me.

However, the moment my weight went off of him, he leapt upward, throwing me off balance, and causing us both to fall into the jungle's watery pool. It began to hiss and bubble with the contact to my skin.

I cried out, thrashing and attempting to get back up, but he rolled onto my chest and grabbed my neck. "I'll choke the damned life out of you, you son of a bitch! When I get out of this, I'm going to kill you! I'm going to shoot that bitch first and make you watch as I fuck her corpse!"

"You won't touch her!" I screamed, grabbing his mandibles and ripping them apart violently. As they came free in my hands, I stabbed one into his shoulder, forcing him to release me as I kicked him off.

This was bad, my health bar was dwindling quickly. That's when I saw Akira suddenly rise from the water behind him. "Aqua Prison!" she cried. The jungle pool rushed around Recluse to form a suit around his body.

I could see him struggling to move inside. "You can restrain him?"

"I don't have much time! We have to wipe his memory, now!"

Just as he was released from the water, I slammed my hands down hard on his shoulders, wheeling behind him and once again getting him into a bearhug. "Current, now!"

She formed before us, her eyes glowing brightly as her body began to pulse. I shut my eyes tightly. "Memory Leak," she murmured as she grasped Chocolate Recluse's head. Just as he went to spit more venom, I clamped one hand over his mouth, causing it to dribble down his chin instead.

The acid was dissolving me, and I didn't have much time left. _Just a little longer,_ I pleaded. A few more seconds and I'd have done my job. I'd have helped her. I still wasn't sure what to do after that. Maybe I'd wake up first and be able to shield Akira with my body. I had no doubt he'd kill us both, but I'd be damned if he got to her first.

After a few moments, he fell still in my grip. Just as my health bar depleted and I collapsed to the ground in exhaustion. My entire body was dissolving now. This was the end. I'd failed her.

Suddenly, my eyes opened and I was once more on the bus. Chocolate Recluse's hand grasped the metal object. Grabbing Akira, I roughly threw her to the ground before jumping over her and waited to feel my body riddled with bullets.

However, nothing happened as I heard frantic cries of two undercover police officers. Turning to look back, I watched as they jumped from the front seat, restraining him as he thrashed violently.

"Where am I? How did I get here?!" he demanded, struggling with the police. They continued to wrestle with him until they managed to pin him to the ground and handcuff him.

"What just happened?" I asked in utter confusion.

Akira gave a sly smile, reaching up to adjust her glasses. "Something of a double-whammy," she explained, trying her best to pronounce the American colloquialism. "I drained his memory. Just as you dissolved, I defeated him, causing him to lose the last of his points. Now he will not have brain burst, nor will he recall our identities. What's better, the tip I sent anonymously to the police seemed to pay off. Thank you, Hughes, for all of your assistance in this matter." Her eyes shimmered beneath the lenses. "Also, you are still on top of me."

"Oh, sorry," I apologized quickly, standing up and offering her my hand. "Are you okay?"

She nodded silently, and once the police had forced him off of the bus, we continued on our way down the road. When we reached our apartment building, the two of us stared up at the doors.

We hadn't said a word since the incident, but she'd spent the entire ride with her head on my shoulder. I'd never really noticed how cute she was before. Still, the thought on my mind was not a cheerful one. I knew what was supposed to come next. "So," I whispered softly. "This is it...isn't it?"

She looked at me perplexed. "It?"

"You're going to wipe my memories now, right? You can't have me knowing your identity. It's too dangerous. I helped you defeat the guy you struggled with, so you don't really need me anymore."

"So that's why you've been so quiet," she noted. "I'll admit, I was worried about this moment for quite some time."

"I get it."

"Oh?"

"You're my friend, Akira. You know that? Even if you have to wipe my memories or delete my Brain Burst, I hope you know that I'll never stop being your friend."

A soft smile crossed her lips. Without a word, she took off her glasses, staring up at me with her beautiful eyes. Wrapping her arms around my neck, she leaned forward and placed a soft and affectionate kiss on my lips.

I was completely stunned. My arms wrapped around her waist and I kissed her back. Never before had I expected this to happen, but with the way she felt against me, I didn't care if this was a dream or real. I didn't want it to end.

Still, eventually our lips parted, and in a husky tone, she purred, "Burst link."

* * *

I blinked for a moment. I'd spaced out while we were standing in front of the apartment building. Turning to regard her Akira beside me, I frowned. "So this is it, isn't it?"

"It?" she asked.

"You're going to wipe my memories now, right? You can't have me knowing your identity. It's too dangerous. I helped you defeat the guy you struggled with, so you don't really need me anymore." When she didn't say anything, I gave a soft sigh. "You're my friend, Akira. You know that? Even if you have to wipe my memories or delete my Brain Burst, I hope you know that I'll never stop being your friend."

A big smile rested on her face. "I know," she said. "And I'm not wiping your memories, or your brain burst. I enjoyed working with you, Hughes...I mean, Zach."

A sigh of relief left my lips. Thank God. For a moment, I was scared she'd actually do it. It was bad being forgotten by my friends. The last thing I wanted was to forget the only one I had left.

"So...Accelerated World Police, huh?" I asked. "Somehow, I think it will all work out."

"You're a little rough around the edges. Don't think I forgot that you originally got your butt handed to you by Recluse."

"Hey! So did you!"

A soft giggle escaped her lips. "All the more reason I'm happy to have you around. Sleep well, Officer Zach. We have school tomorrow after all."

"You too, Officer Akira. I hope you have sweet dreams."

Giving me a wave, she skipped up the steps with more joy than I'd ever seen from her and vanished inside. For a moment, I stood there, when I realized that the smile she wore had found itself on my face too. Maybe I wasn't so alone after all.

* * *

"Well I'll be damned," Scarlet Rain hummed as Akira entered her apartment. "Seems you did a pretty good job of training that know-nothing after all."

"Mmhm." Akira would normally have been greatly bothered by the fact that the young girl had just let herself into her apartment, but after what had happened outside, she was on cloud nine.

"You like this guy quite a bit then."

"He's a wonderful friend."

"That's not what I meant."

Akira straightened. Adjusting her glasses, she turned around to face Yuniko who sat cross legged on her couch. "If you have something to say, say it...Red King."

"Are you prepared to go through this all over again?" she asked. "Seriously, just join the Red Kingdom already. We already work close together. There's no reason why you can't. We may even be able to get you back all those levels you lost."

"Not interested," she growled.

Yuniko smirked. "All right, well maybe I'll just go talk to him then. After all, I'm sure he'd be greatly interested to find out that you've been lying to him." As the Red King opened the front door, Akira quickly rushed over there and slammed the door shut before she could leave.

"Why are you doing this?"

"What, you think you're the only one who can teach him anything? I'm sure he'd be curious to hear that there was a Red King before me."

"I had nothing to do with that!"

"Oh? I doubt that. After all, you were still part of the Nega Nebulous then, right? How precisely did Black Lotus manage to escape the other kings that were there again? I mean, it just seems so unlikely that she'd be able to get away from _all_ of them without a little bit of help. It's bad enough for you to be stuck at level 1, but imagine if he were a higher level. Or even better, what if he joined one of the kingdoms and it were to get out? Do you think they'd use Judgment Blow on him? That'd really put a damper on your relationship wouldn't it?"

Akira's chest tightened. She didn't realize anyone had known of her involvement. She'd been so careful. She wiped all of their memories. She even went to find that monster and let it drain her of all her levels so that she'd stay under their radar. So long as she was level 1 and stayed far away from them, they wouldn't be able to get rid of all of her points.

"What do you want from me, Yuniko?"

Yuniko shrugged her shoulders. "Don't know yet. For now, I'll settle with you keeping your nose out of my kingdom."

"You gave us permission for that hunt."

"Maybe so, but what was I supposed to do? Deny you while all of my subjects were watching? Have to keep the rapport somehow, especially with my age."

Akira trembled there. "Please, don't do this. I am begging you."

"I won't, under one condition."

"Name it."

"You and your...friend...join the Red Kingdom. I'm having some concerns about the other Kings. War is coming despite our non-aggression pact, I can feel it in my bones. I need all the help I can get. I can't afford to be nice."

Aqua Current frowned as Yuniko opened her door once more. This time she didn't move to stop her. "What if I can't convince him to join?" she asked.

Scarlet looked at her. "Not my problem. I seriously doubt that you won't be able to though. Just flash those beautiful blues of yours and I'm sure he'll gladly tag along with whatever you ask." Stepping outside, she paused, turning back to look at the bodyguard. "Just think about it, okay? Let me know when you've made your decision."

Closing the door behind her, Akira sighed. Sinking against her door, she buried her face into her knees. This was not the way she wanted things to go.

* * *

The next day, I straightened my school uniform, and stepped outside. Akira already stood just in front of my door, waiting for me. "Good morning," I greeted cheerfully.

"Good morning."

It felt as if the joy from our victory yesterday had worn off completely. Gone was the smile she'd flashed me that could melt hearts. As sad as I was to see it go, I knew that nothing could really last forever.

"Listen, Hughes...we need to talk."

"Okay," I said slowly. "What do you want to talk about?"

Her gaze fell to her shoes as she shifted her weight back and forth. "I'm afraid, we can't be friends anymore," she whispered.

"What? Akira, that's not funny."

"It's not a joke."

My heart was pounding against my ribs. I'd never felt pain like this before. "What did I do wrong?" I demanded.

"N-nothing! It's not like that, it's just…" her words trailed off as she tried to come up with a way to explain. "You deserve better," she finally murmured. "I'm not a great friend. Haven't you ever realized that no one else spends time with me? There's a reason for it."

Crossing my arms, I stared at her expectantly. "I don't buy it."

"Don't buy what?"

"This. This whole thing! In one night you went form 'I enjoyed working with you' to 'We can't be friends anymore.' It's all a load of bullshit. What's wrong, Akira? If something is troubling you, you have to tell me. We're friends, that's what friends do."

Her eyes held a deep sadness as she shook her head. "We're not friends anymore, Hughes-san. My problems aren't yours anymore. They never have been." With that, she turned on her heels and left.

The 'san' honorific stung a little. I wasn't chan or kun anymore, I was just a person passed on the street. Respectful, but little else. "Burst link," I whispered, causing time to freeze. I rapidly challenged her to a battle, causing her to appear before me.

"Hughes-san, what are you doing?" she asked flatly. "You can't beat me in this game. I've been doing this far longer than you have."

"I don't care," I snapped. "Our friendship is worth fighting for! If you don't believe that then fine, you can try to beat me to a pulp, but I'm not letting this go! If I beat you, you have to tell me what's wrong."

"And if I beat you…?"

I couldn't believe her. She was really insistent on not being friends anymore. How could she possibly toss me aside so carelessly? "If you beat me, then I only have one request. Wipe my memory, so I don't ever have to remember the pain you put me through."

I couldn't see any emotion in Aqua Current's features. If my request bothered her, she didn't show it. When the timer started, I expected her to charge me, but instead she ran to the banister of our apartment building. Planting a hand on the rail, she leapt over the edge, falling the full hundred or so feet to the bottom.

My eyes widened. Was she trying to kill herself?! When I went to the edge to look over, I saw her hit the ground with a plop before reforming and looking up at me. Damn it! Her body really did prevent any sort of physical damage.

I knew I couldn't possibly mimic that action. If I tried that I'd break on impact. "Seriously?!" I shouted down at her. "That's so cheap!"

Without a word, she turned and ran for the entrance. Looking outside of the now crumbling building, I could see another one, just a little lower with about a six foot gap. Well, here went nothing.

I ran towards the gaping hole, diving from it and rolling just as I hit the next roof over. She'd just made it out of the building, as I grabbed a nearby fire escape and slid down the ladder. I could feel the heat in my palms building up toward inferno range, but still I didn't ignite, thankfully.

Upon hitting the ground, I could see her turning to see if I'd jumped from the banister as she had, allowing me to get the drop on her. Just as she turned forward, I dove on her, tackling her to the ground in a foamy struggle.

I pinned her down as the acid sizzled over us both. "Enough!" I growled. "Why are you doing this, Akira?"

"It's not any of your business," she shot back before melting into a puddle and reforming away from me.

"Damn it, I'm not going to let you get away!"

"You don't have a choice," she argued.

"There's always a choice!" I began to throw quick jabs at her, but she managed to stay just out of my reach. Every now and then, she'd hurl a slosh of water at me, sending the acidic foam over my body before I shook it off.

The timer was still counting down and both of our special bars were nearly charged. I put on an extra burst of speed. If I could start an echo combo on her, it'd be no time at all until she lost the match.

However, just as her bar charged up, she suddenly held up a hand. "Torrential downpour!" she cried.

What? I looked up, just as the sky opened and from it a heavy rain crashed to the ground. Visibility went from perfect to nothing in the blink of an eye, and worse I was now covered in acid. My health bar was dwindling, and hers was regenerating quickly.

I sank to my knees, my legs already dissolved to the point where I could no longer stand. "Why?" I pleaded. "Just tell me why you're doing this?"

Leaning down in front of me, she stared deep into my eyes. I knew then, she wasn't going to answer my question. "I'm sorry, Hughes-san. Perhaps I am being selfish, but I cannot grant your request. I won't wipe your memories of me. Good bye."

Before I could question her further, my HP dwindled to 0 and the match ended. When my eyes opened, Akira was already gone. I slammed my fist into the ground with a cry of anger. Was I ever going to be able to win a match? That's when I realized the reason Akira didn't want to be friends anymore. I'd never really been any use to her at all.

To be continued...


	4. Chapter 4

Punch, Brother, Punch Ch. 4

It'd been three days since Akira last spoke with me. In that time, I hadn't logged into Brain Burst once. Since we lived in the same building, we ran into each other every now and then. Every time, I'd open my mouth to call out to her, but the words wouldn't come.

Even at school she wouldn't speak to me. We used to eat lunch together, but now I sat alone. "Pardon me, is this seat taken?" I blinked, looking towards the voice. The girl was beautiful! About my age, too. She had long black hair that went down her back, and judging by the color ribbon she wore, she was in the same grade as I was.

"Oh, uh...no," I replied. "Please, you can sit if you like."

She flashed me a coy smile before doing just that. Setting her lunch box down across from me, she sat, and began to eat her lunch. Unsure of what to say or do, I ate mine as well. God, this felt so awkward. There was a gorgeous girl across from me, just eating her lunch like it was no big deal.

"What is your name?" she asked, finally speaking up.

"Hughes."

"And your first name?"

"Zack."

She considered it for a moment before nodding her head. "Very well, Hughes-san. Thank you for allowing me to join you. Allow me to introduce myself. You may call me Kuroyukihime. I have heard much about you."

" _You_ 've heard about _me_?" I repeated in surprise.

"We have much to discuss, and I'd rather do it in private. Burst link."

"Burst link!" I quickly stated, bracing myself for a fight. Instead, however, my avatar was ejected out of my body, leaving me standing in front of the same beautiful girl,, although now she carried a parasol and had large pink butterfly wings on her back.

Noting my stance, she covered her mouth with a slight giggle. "Sorry. I did not mean to alarm you. Anyway, as I said before, we have much to discuss, Phosphor Punch."

"How do you know who I am?" I demanded.

"A mutual friend slipped me your name."

"That's funny. I don't really have any friends."

"Oh? Are you sure?" she asked. The way she put a lilting sing-song into her voice irritated me greatly. I didn't care how pretty she was. I hated when people acted so smug. "I can see you are growing frustrated. Allow me to put your mind at ease. I am a friend of Akira's. Otherwise known as Aqua Current."

I clenched my fists tightly. "As I said...I don't really have any friends."

"I heard you managed to get a hit in on the Red King," she said, ignoring my protest. "Very impressive. There are level 8 characters who do not have that boasting right."

"Please excuse my rudeness Kuroyukihime, but what is it you want with me?"

"I'd like you to join the Nega Nebulous. We're dedicated to reaching Level 10, the final level, in Accel World. I think you'd be a great asset as one of my knights."

"One of your knights? You must be the Black King."

"Black Lotus, at your service," she beamed. "Tell me, what have you got to lose, hmm?"

Considering it for a moment, I drummed my fingers against the table. "And if I refuse?"

"We part ways and that will be the end of it. Unless of course, you decide to go against us in the future, in which case…" Her voice plummeted to subzero in coldness. "I will crush you."

"What's that? You have a crush on me?"

"Wh-what?! No! I didn't…"

The fact that I'd managed to fluster her brought a smile to my face. "That's what you just said right? You'd be crushing on me?"

"I do not have a crush on you!" she protested loudly. "You're lucky that my knight isn't here because he'd punch you in the face just for suggesting so!"

"Relax, princess. It was just a joke," I sighed. "To be honest, you're not really my type anyway."

"What's that supposed to mean? Are you implying something about my looks, hmm?"

"Tell you what. I'll join your Kingdom, but I have conditions."

Kuroyukihime puffed out her cheeks in irritation. "First you criticize my looks and now you're making demands? Jerk."

"Do you want to hear them or not?"

"Fine. What are they?"

Running a hand through my blonde hair, I scratched the back of my head. I didn't really think this far ahead. "You said Akira sent you?" I asked.

"No. I said I was a friend of hers."

"Then how _did_ you find out about me?"

"It's my job to know such things," she hummed. "Now, your demands, if you please."

"A date," I replied. "In exchange for my membership in the Nega Nebulous, I want a date."

Her cheeks turned a bright red. "You must be out of your mind!"

I shrugged. "Maybe. It's your choice. A date or I walk. What's it going to be?"

Her eyes sharpened. "I've half a mind to kick your ass," she growled. "Name something else. There has to be something else that you want."

"And if there isn't?"

"Then we're finished here."

She opened her mouth to give the command code, but before she could, I moved to her and clamped my hand over her mouth. She gave a surprised squeak. "The date. It's not for you."

Taking my hand she pried it away from her mouth. "What do you mean? Like you want me to set you up with some other girl?"

I shook my head. "No, the date is with you, but it's not for you. I've no intentions of going steady. One date, no strings attached."

"Then what's the point? To humiliate me? Trying to increase your popularity, maybe?"

"To make someone jealous," I replied.

A cat-like grin spread across her face. "I see. And just who, precisely, are you trying to make jealous?"

"Does it matter?"

The two of us stared one another down for a long while. "Okay."

"Okay?"

"Sure. I'll go on _one_ date with you. Just the one."

I smiled at her. "Then we have a deal."

"Good."

As we shook hands, she pulled me close to her and whispered into my ear. "You'd better make this worth my while, Punch. I'm talking all the stops. Got it? Your treat, of course."

"What do you take me for, some barbarian? Of course it's my treat. When and where?"

"This afternoon, right after school. I'll meet you by the front gate."

Would my plan work? I really hoped so. Akira didn't strike me as the jealous type, but then again...maybe she was. At the least, i'd have a nice date with a pretty girl. With that, the Black King disconnected, and the two of us finished our lunch in silence.

The day couldn't go by fast enough. I stared at my screen, drumming my fingers on the desk as I contemplated my date. When the bell rang, I rushed to the front of the school, only to see Kuroyukihime already there and with someone else as well.

"Senpai, why are we just standing here? Don't you want to walk home together?" the short-statured boy asked.

"Actually, I'm not going home," she told him, the eerily calm smile still on her face.

He blinked in confusion. "You're not? Why not?"

"I promised to meet someone here after school," she explained.

"Hey," I greeted. "Sorry I'm late."

"Not at all," she assured me. "Right on time, in fact."

"Senpai, who is this?"

She put on an expression of surprise as if she'd forgotten completely that he was standing there. It seemed I wasn't the only one trying to make someone jealous. "Oh! Sorry. Haru, this is Zach-kun. Zach-kun, this is Haru, one of my knights."

Haru's face was the color of a tomato, but I couldn't tell if it was out of rage and embarrassment in regards to the situation. "Zach-kun?" Haru asked her in confusion.

"A pleasure to make your acquaintance Haru-san. Are you ready for our date, my princess?"

"D-date?! P-Princess?" Haru's head was swiveling back and forth between us so quickly, I was concerned that he may drop dead from a heart attack.

"Mmhm. Sorry to make you walk home, kohai. I'll see you tomorrow, 'kay?" She finished her statement with a wink before wrapping her arm around mine and pressing against me as I led her down the street. When we were out of earshot she whispered, "Is he watching?"

I turned my head slightly as if I were talking to her, and out of the corner of my eye I could see him on his hands and knees, as if being crushed under the weight of despair. "I think you broke him," I told her. "Let me guess, the knight who would punch me in the face?"

"He is very protective of me," she giggled. "I wouldn't be surprised if he followed us on our date."

"About that…"

"What? More demands?"

I considered it for a moment. "Not a demand. More of a request. But I warn you it's a big one."

"Bigger than a date?" she asked. That's when a thought occurred to her, causing the pressure on my arm to multiply. "I know you're not about to proposition me."

"Quite the opposite," I told her. "Would you be willing to pass around in Brain Burst about this date? I suppose to put it in royalty terms, that I'm asking for a political marriage."

She bit her lip. "I fear that truly would break Haruyuki. What's more, I don't see the point of it."

"There's a chance that Akira won't even know about this," I told her.

"Akira?" I froze. _Shit_. Kuroyukihime smirked at me. "I see. I think I've just about figured you out."

"You don't know me."

"Don't need to," she giggled. "It's written all over your face. Besides, I think I may have found the source of your problem. My answer to your proposal by the way is 'no'. That will hardly be necessary."

"You have a plan?"

"Maybe." Before I could react, she leaned up and kissed my cheek, taking a snapshot at the same time. "Voila. One selfie that'll be enough to make any girl jealous," she grinned. "Now I'll just upload that to the social media site and…tada!"

As she showed me her screen, I couldn't help but blush. "Date night with cute gaijin?" I read. "Really. Had to be gaijin? Couldn't just be boy."

She waved her hand dismissively. "Relax, it'll work. I promise. Don't make promises you can't keep. Also, don't forget about Haruyuki."

"Gah! I forgot about Haru! Oh no. No, no, no. I have to text him quick and explain."

"Why don't you just tell him how you feel?" I asked.

The glare she shot at me was like a laser. "Why don't you just tell Akira how _you_ feel?"

"We're not presently on speaking terms."

"Shocker."

Suddenly, both of our Nervegears began ringing off the hook. It was Akira for me. I could only assume that meant that the other was Haru. "I've got to take this," we both said simultaneously.

Moving a respectable distance from each other, I answered the call. "Hello?" I greeted.

"What are you doing?"

"Oh, hey Akira. I can't really talk right now, I'm on a date."

"This is not wise, Hughes. You're getting in way over your head."

"Right? I mean she's _way_ out of my league," I replied, trying to hide the smugness in my voice. My plan had gone off without a hitch. "Was there something you wanted?"

I heard her take a deep breath before letting out a long sigh. "Why are you doing this?"

"How do you mean?"

"You _know_ what I mean."

I leaned against a lamp post, kicking a pebble with my shoe. "To be honest, I'm surprised you called at all. I thought we weren't friends anymore." On the other side of the line I could hear the sounds of sniffling. Was Akira crying? The thought made my heart plummet. Oh God, this wasn't what I meant to happen.

Meanwhile I could see that Kuroyukihime had already completed her call and had a satisfied smile on her face. God, why couldn't Akira and I be like that?

"Look, Akira…"

"No," she whispered. "It's fine. You're right, my apologies. I forgot for a moment that we're not friends anymore. I don't have the right to pry into your personal life anymore. Good bye, Hughes."

"Akira, wait!" I tried, before the line went dead. "Damn it!" I quickly called her back, tapping my foot. "Pick up, pick up."

" _You've reached the phone of Himi Akira. If you'd like to leave a message, please do so after the tone."_

"Hey! C'mon, pick up. I know you're there Akira. Look, It's not like you think. This was just the only way to get you to talk to me again! Please, pick up. I…" I paused, my breathing going ragged. "I miss you, Akira. Everyone else has left me. Please don't leave me, too."

Tears began to well up in my eyes and when there was no response, I finally closed the call. What was the use? There was no point. I always faded into people's pasts. That was my curse. Honestly, if I just disappeared, no one would even miss me.

"No luck?" Kuroyukihime asked. I shook my head. "I see…" she murmured, her expression sinking.

"You? Haru seems to be head over heels for you. I'm sure he was quick to understand."

She nodded, trying to put on a cheerful smile. "Yeah. That's his way. Haru always seems to put others before himself, even strangers."

"That's great. I'm really happy for you. Well, so much for our date, I guess. Not much point in it now."

As I turned to leave, she rushed after me. "Wait a minute! You can't just leave."

"Hmm?"

"I held up my end of the bargain. Now you have to do your part, too."

"Oh, right right. The whole Nega Nebulous thing. Look, I'll be completely honest, I don't even know if I'm going to be playing anymore."

"Seriously?"

"Not really any reason to anymore. I started to help Akira. I helped her with what she wanted, now she's done with me. Why even bother staying around?"

"For your friends?"

My eyes met hers and again, I grit my teeth. "I told you, I don't have any friends. I really don't care about this stupid fight you're having. I don't care about levels. All I wanted was to help my friend, and so far this game has brought me nothing but trouble."

"I'm sorry you feel that way. I suppose if you're not having any fun there isn't any real reason to play. Surely it wasn't all bad though, was it? You must have had even a little fun."

"I liked working with Akira. We were supposed to be partners. Accelerated World Police. Protecting the innocent players from the bullies."

"Why can't you still be?"

I looked at her. "Are you even listening to me? Akira doesn't want anything to do with me."

"I'm not talking about Akira, I'm talking about you. If you want to be the World Police, be the World Police. The only thing is, you're not going to be able to do it alone. Tell you what. Haru is a great fighter. I'll get him to spar with you. Once you're stronger than maybe…"

"Maybe what?" I snapped. "Maybe Akira will come running back to be my friend again? Maybe people will realize that I'm not some sort of trash to just be tossed away? No thanks. If I have to buy friendship, than I'd rather not have it at all."

Just as I turned to leave, that's when Akira's words echoed in my head. "I've found that it's quite obvious that you keep me around less as a friend and more as a social comfort. To you, I am a safety net...You are afraid I would leave you. So you put on a facade of friendship because of that fear."

"You're right," I whispered finally. "Fine. I'll spar with your boytoy. I still don't know about joining Nega Nebulous, but if you think becoming stronger will help me be friends with Akira again, than I trust you."

"Excellent. Then let us begin at once. Burst link."

"Burst link!"

The world vanished around us, leaving us in the Ruined City stage. _A Challenger Appears!_ A counter appeared above me, ticking down the time until the match started. A lithe thin silver figure appeared in front of me, holding his hands up defensively. "Silver Crow," I noted, looking at the name under the enemy health bar. "Funny, you don't look like a crow."

"They should have called you Phosphorous Kangaroo," he replied.

"That's fair," I sighed. "Sorry about earlier."

"No, no. It's okay, really. Senpai explained everything," he assured me. Wow this guy sure was nice. "She says you won't join Nega Nebulous though. Why not?"

"Sorry, but it's just not the place for me. Good luck, Crow."

"You too, Punch."

 _BEGIN!_

Immediately, I rushed in towards him, swinging my fists like a professional boxer. I had to get my special gauge charged up or else I'd be done for quick. Silver was highly conductive to heat, even more so than copper. If I could keep him on the ropes and then ignite and echo, his health would be gone in a flash.

"Whoa! You're fast," he commented, dodging my punches in a blur of movement. "But you're swinging too wildly. Keep your arms closer to your body and throw them forward. You'll lose a little power, but you'll hit faster."

Pivoting on his foot, he swung his foot around to kick me in the jaw, sending me spinning to the ground. Slamming my fist down in frustration, I hopped back to my feet. "You're pretty spry yourself," I noted.

As I went into another flurry of punches and kicks, Haru crossed his arms in front of himself. He took my blows pretty straight on, but as he said the jabs I had weren't nearly as effective. Damn it, I had to find a way to slow him down.

I feinted to the left pretending to go into a round house. Just as he turned however, I stomped my foot down, and sent a haymaker from my left fist straight towards his cheek. He saw it at just the last second and it sent him reeling. "Good blow," he complimented, pausing to rub his green glassy face plate.

"Thanks. Shall we continue?"

"Of course. Now I'm going to come at you. Let's see how your defense stacks up."

As fast as I thought my blows were, his were doubly so. It was everything I could in order to bob and weave through his attacks. This was bad. I was being pushed back. Again, he was moving too quickly.

"Come on! You were able to get a hit on Scarlet Rain, right? You should be able to dodge these no problem."

"One: she's a little girl. Two: She didn't exactly move very much!"

Still, that gave me an idea. This was going to hurt, but it was necessary. I just stopped. Haru's fist rammed straight into my face. As I predicted though, his strikes weren't very powerful. What he made up for in speed, he lost in power.

I wheeled around him, wrapping my arms around his waist and bending backwards into a suplex. Just as he was moving over me though, his back started to glow. The hell? Wings erupted from him, causing us to both launch upside down. I was still holding on to him, but just barely.

"You can fly?! That's cheating!" I shouted over the sound of the wind rushing past us.

"It's not cheating! It's my special armament!"

"Well let me show you what I've got up my sleeve," I snarled, pulling back on him hard. Now sandwiched between Crow and the ground, I ignited into a fiery inferno that engulfed us both.

"What in the–?!"

"It's the benefit of being made of match heads," I hissed, trying to endure the pain. He suddenly turned, boosting upwards in hopes of extinguishing the flames through the wind. "Now! E-echo!" I cried. Duplicates of me flared to life, the fire now burning even brighter than before. Now both of our health bars were dwindling at an incredibly fast rate.

"Echo?! What is that? GAH! It burns even more now!" He twisted himself, turning around to face me, but I knew that wouldn't help.

"It's all over now," I grunted.

"Not yet! Headbutt!"

Headbutt? His face glowed for a moment before with an intense blast, he sent my head spinning. Breaking free of me, he flapped his wings, patting out the fire on himself as I plummeted towards the earth.

Now the fire had truly blown out, meaning my health bar was safe at nearly one quarter of its max. However, that did little for the fact that I was now hurtling towards the ground. God, not only was this the end of the fight, this was going to hurt like hell when I woke up.

"Hold on, I gotcha!"

My eyes snapped open to see Crow diving at me. His hand wrapped around mine, and with a flap of his wings, he slowed our descent until he could gently set me on top of a building.

"Whoo, that was a close one, wasn't it?" he laughed, scratching his head. "Man, when you caught on fire, I thought that I was a goner. You're pretty good at this."

"Why did you catch me? If I hit the ground you would have won."

"Yeah, but that would have hurt like crazy," he told me. "Besides, it's a friendly spar. There's no need to go so far."

"You are one seriously strange guy, Haru. But I like you."

"You did very well. Both of you," a feminine voice commented. Turning, I saw a well-endowed black avatar. However, instead of arms and legs, she had sharp pointed blades and hovered just slightly off the ground.

"Kuroyukihime? Is that you?" I asked.

"In this form, please address me as Black Lotus," she requested.

"Right. Sorry. Thank you for the compliment Black Lotus. Although…"

"Although?"

I looked at her and Haru before dejectedly glancing down at my feet. "I've yet to win a single battle," I explained. "Not by myself anyway."

"Really?" Haru asked in surprise. "You fought really well though. I wonder if there is another problem," he mused.

"Another problem?" I asked. "What other problem can there be other than me?"

"Well, you still haven't learned the incar–" His words trailed off as he suddenly fell quiet. "I mean, maybe you just don't have much experience with video games. Senpai found me because of my high score in Squash."

I frowned. Now I was doubly curious about what he was going to say. "I doubt that that is the issue Crow," Black Lotus interjected. "Rather the obvious problem is that all of your combat stratagems seem to inflict self-harm. In the accelerated world, every bit of health counts. That being said, we need to find a way to reduce the amount of damage done to yourself without sacrificing your output."

"I agree, but how are we going to do that?" I questioned.

"Wait! Senpai, you don't mean to take him to see sensei do you?"

"Sensei? I thought only people our age could play this game."

"Crow calls her sensei because she assisted training him. But yes, I do believe it is best that we take him there."

I gave a nervous gulp. "Who exactly is this mystery person?"

Even without facial features, I could still detect the smug grin on Kuroyukihime's lips. "You may call her Sky Raker…"

To be continued...


End file.
